I agree that it’s a good idea to ask ourselves what we want to pass on to future generations. I would like to be able to take my kids and grandchildren to the farm, enjoy some oysters and see our state’s only remaining oyster cannery and a small business providing local, sustainable food.
I agree that nature has a right to exist. When I hike the trails around the farm, I see nature existing. As far as exploiting wilderness, all farms essentially “exploit” wilderness. This is how we get our food.
Yes, there should be no further development there. No, the creators of this potential wilderness area never intended to shut down the farm. Yes, the 100-year-old farm should be allowed to continue to produce the good food and jobs it provides.
The oyster farm is irreplaceable. Removing it will cause far more environmental damage than leaving it, including the vastly larger carbon footprint of importing oysters from long distances.
LETTERS to the Editor
Visit the (oyster) farm yourself
Dear Editor,
In response to Carissa Brand’s letter in last week’s Light, I wonder if Ms. Brand has ever been to Drakes Bay Oyster Company, and whether she would use the same language if she knew a little more about it.
For example, privatization means making something private that was previously public; the oyster farm was there long before the land was made public, and the legislators who helped create the park never intended to shut down the ranches or the oyster farm.
Concentration of wealth? This is a family-run farm. The Lunnys make a living for themselves and their employees, not mega-profits.
Outside interests? Kevin Lunny was born and raised on this land. I also grew up in this community, and I think I can say that most of us who are “native” to the area are in support of the oyster farm remaining. We are not “outside interests.”
It’s probably also true that those who want to shut it down are relatively new to the community, or don’t even live here. Thus, they have far less understanding of our history, and many have surely never seen the farm.
I agree that it’s a good idea to ask ourselves what we want to pass on to future generations. I would like to be able to take my kids and grandchildren to the farm, enjoy some oysters and see our state’s only remaining oyster cannery and a small business providing local, sustainable food.
I agree that nature has a right to exist. When I hike the trails around the farm, I see nature existing. As far as exploiting wilderness, all farms essentially “exploit” wilderness. This is how we get our food.
Yes, there should be no further development there. No, the creators of this potential wilderness area never intended to shut down the farm. Yes, the 100-year-old farm should be allowed to continue to produce the good food and jobs it provides.
The oyster farm is irreplaceable. Removing it will cause far more environmental damage than leaving it, including the vastly larger carbon footprint of importing oysters from long distances.
Finally, as far as division in our community, it’s okay to have different opinions; those differences need not necessarily create division. Dale Sorensen, for example, is someone I’ve known and liked for years; her stand on this issue does not diminish my affection for her.
I do wish that all those who are in opposition to Drakes Bay would please educate themselves on what’s really at stake. Visit the farm if you haven’t ever been there, talk to the people working there, try a jar of oysters, go for a nearby hike, talk to neighboring ranchers—and then see if you still have a problem with it.
Ingrid Noyes
Marshall
Drakes Bay Oyster Company & the National Park Service. Watch the video, "THE FRAMING OF AN OYSTER FARM" at http://vimeo.com/52331881 
R Hart
/ July 6, 2013Keep DBOC open.